MACON, Ga. — A Macon man pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to trafficking fentanyl after being found with nearly half a pound of the drug, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia.
They say 36-year-old Antonio Whitehead was stopped by a Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputy on Feb. 20, 2023, on Georgia Highway 401 when the officer noticed the smell of drugs. They also saw that the driver had a suspended license.
Whitehead was in the passenger seat of the vehicle. They say both he and the driver made "inconsistent statements" when interacting with the sheriff's deputy.
When additional sheriff's office deputies and they began a search of their vehicle, that's when the situation escalated.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says Whitehead rushed to the driver's seat of the car and attempted to speed away. That's when an officer shot out the rear tires of the vehicle to "prevent a high-speed chase."
After a search of the vehicle, they found almost half a pound of fentanyl, 1.25 pounds of methamphetamine and a little under a quarter of a pound of cocaine, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
They also say that Whitehead had several bags of marijuana and a bag of fentanyl on him as well.
Whitehead told authorities that the driver of the vehicle had nothing to do with the drugs that they found, the press release said.
The case was investigated by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office and the FBI.
He faces up to 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine, the press release said.
The U.S. Attorney's Office said Whitehead had previously been convicted on federal drug distribution charges in West Virginia, and he was on supervised release when he was stopped by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office.